Tuesday, October 20, 2009

When You Are Engulfed In Flames: David Sedaris


David Sedaris is a short story writer who has gained a bit of notoriety over the years for his sharp wit and keen observation of the dysfunctional family dynamic. In reading some of his previous work, I was entertained and frequently provoked to compare my own dysfunctional family to the family he describes as his own. Sedaris doesn't hide the reality from his readers, rather, he illuminates how dysfunction makes a family what it is. I have never thought of his writing as funny at the expense of his family, but simply shining a light on some of the more humiliating facets of an average American family with the result of loving them all the more.

When You Are Engulfed In Flames is less about his family and more about the world at large. Perhaps it is the focus on others that makes me uncomfortable. Somehow, it's acceptable to point and laugh at your own family, but pointing and laughing at others is just cruel. In this collection of short stories, Sedaris does a lot of travel--Paris, London, America, Japan--and he manages to find something to poke fun of everywhere he goes--hygiene, language barriers, local customs, etc. At least he remembers to mention that he does plenty of things worth poking fun at as well.

The last story in this collection explains the title. It is called "The Smoking Section"; a recount of his efforts to quit smoking after a twenty-some year habit. This may have been my favorite chapter because of my personal relationship with nicotine, or because of the humor. In an effort to change his scenery and habits, Sedaris and his partner Hugh go to Tokyo for three months. It is a common belief that to quit smoking, one needs to change one's habits and hangouts. If only every smoker could afford to pick up and move away for three months!

My overall opinion is that while Sedaris is a witty and humorous writer, this particular collection relies too heavily on making entire cultures the butt of his jokes. Even when it's just a single person, he seems to be pointing and laughing in that big bully way that says "See? At least I'm better than that guy!"

6 comments:

  1. You have such a true heart. I wish you could read my students' Soundtrack of My Life projects. They are good and true, too. So many of them value friendship so much and they seem to be trying so hard to find meaning.

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  2. Have you read "Dress Your Family Corduroy and Denim"? It seems that he's honestly delighted by the dysfunctional elements of every society. He likes to visit other countries and ask them about gun laws and rooster sounds.

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  3. SC--I have read it, and I usually enjoy his writing. It may just be my current mood, or something, but this novel really does strike me as a bit more cruel than his previous writing. Somehow, when it's just about his family, it's funny. When it's about other cultures, or well-intentioned strangers, I get uncomfortable.

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  4. Pom Pom--Thank you for the kind compliment! So sweet of you. I imagine that the writing of your students is very honest. I remember all too well, as a young teen, wishing for some sort of revelation that would make everything meaningful for me. I used to think that EVERYTHING had to have meaning.

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  5. It's been a while since I read it -- since I didn't pick up on any of this (or at least don't remember it) perhaps I should revisit it once I've scaled my rapidly growing "to read" list.

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  6. Well, I don't think his previous books are as pointedly cruel as this one. Which is not to say that it's not funny! There are moments in When You Are Engulfed In Flames that had me laughing out loud. I just don't recall anything in Dress Your Family In Corduroy And Denim or in Naked that made me feel uncomfortable that way parts of this particular volume did.

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